Apparatus for treating wool-wash waters.



. RATRNTRD JAN. 17, 1905. G. R. BRHRRNS Af. G.. TAYLOR. APPARATUS TORTRRATING woor, WASH WATERS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 14, 1903.

A NORA/frs.

No. 780,475.l

- UNITED STATES Patented January 17, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

' GEORGE E. BEHRENs, OE IvORYTON, CONNECTICUT, AND GEORGE TAYLOR,

OE NEW YORK, N. Y.

l 'APPARATUS FOR TFiEATlNC-v WOOL-WASH WATERS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 780,475, dated January17, 1905. Application filed A ugnst 14, 1903. Serial No. 169,455.

To all whom t may] concern:

Be it known that we, GEORGE E. BEHRENs, a resident of Ivoryton, in thecounty oi' Middlesex and State of Connecticut, and GEORGE TAYLOR, aresident of the city of New York, boroughof Manhattan,in the county andState of New York, citizens of the United States, have invented a newand Improved Apparatus for Treating Wool-Wash Waters, of which thefollowingis a full, clear, and exact description.

Our invention relates to anv apparatus for treating wool-wash waters orsuds obtained in the scouring operation of wool for the purpose ofeliminating grease or fat, dirt, and other impurities therefrom.

One object of the present invention is to produce an improved form ofapparatus wherein the refuse-laden liquid from wool-scouring machinesmay be treated by proper chemical agents in an economical and relatively'expeditious manner for the purpose of filtering the impuritiesfrom thewater andv for separating4 the fats and grease from the dirt and otherrefuse.

A further object of the invention is to equip the apparatus .with meansby which a solvent,

such-as a hydrocarbon of the order of naphtha or benzin, may beexpeditiously eliminated Jfrom the oil, fat, or grease and restoredwithout appreciable waste to a commercial condition and ready for use inthe apparatus.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear in thecourse of the subjoined description, and the actual scope thereof willbe defined by the annexed claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar'characters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in both the figures.

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic View, partly in section, illustrating ourplant for treating wool-wash waters; and Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectionalelevation through a still forming one element of the plant and adaptedfor the volatilization of a solvent and the consequent separationthereof from the oil and grease obtained by the treatment of thewoolwash Water.

5 designates a primary receiving-tank, to which is coupleda feed-pipe 6,the latter being arranged to-receive the wool-wash water valve 12, thelatter preventing back pressure of the iuid Jfrom the filter-press tothe pump.

This Jlter-press is provided with a plurality of cocks or valves 13, bywhich the matters contained in the press subsequent to the operation offiltering the substances under pressure may be discharged separatelyinto a trough 14, the latter being arranged in an inclined positionbelow the iilter-press and the series of cocks 13 thereof. From thisinclined trough leads a water-discharge pipe 15, having a globe-valve16, said pipe being conducted to any suitable point where it is desiredto discharge the water from the ilter-pressk-as, for example, to asewer.

The inclined trough is provided with a gate 17, the latter beingdisposed in the trough between its delivery end and the point ofattachmentof the pipe 15, and to the deliveryend portionoi" thistroughis secured another pipe, 18, the gate 17 kbeing located between'the pipes 15 18. The last-mentioned pipe, 18,

is coupled to a second tank 19, which is preferably supported in, a`raised position by a framework 20, said second tank being disposed belowthe iilter-press and the trough' in order that the oil and fatsdischarged from the filter-press and the trough may flow by gravity intosaid tank 19.

21 designates a supply-tank adapted to contain a solvent which is to beadmittedto 'the filter-press for the purpose of separating the oil,grease, and fats from dirt and other refuse subsequent to theelimination of the waters from the solid matters by the action of thefilter-press. This tank may contain any suitable solvent-such asnaphtha, benzin, or other hydrocarbon-and from the tank leads a pipe 22,which is coupled to the pipe 7 at a point between the pump and the valve9, said pipe 22 being furnished with a globle-valve 23. In the operationof pumping the liquid from the primary tank 5 to the filter-press thevalve 23 must be closed to prevent the solvent from passing into thefilter-press, whereas the valve 9 is opened. After the filter-pressshall have been charged in all of its compartments with the wool-washwater the valve 9 should be closed to cut off communication of theprimary tank 5 with the pump. The filter-press is operated in the usualway for the expression of water from the residue-such as fats, dirt, andother matterthe water escaping freely through the cocks 13 into thetrough 14 and through the pipe 15 to the place of discharge, the gate 17being closed and the valve 16 opened. The tank 21 shouldnow be broughtinto service by opening the valve 23 and starting the pump 8, wherebythe solvent is pumped from the tankk into the press, so that it willoperate on the solid residue present therein for separating the oil,fat, and grease from the dirt and refuse. The valve 16 should be closedand the gate 17 opened, after which the solvent, with the oil and fattymatters, may pass from the compartments of the filter-press through thevalves 13 into the trough let and thence through the pipe 18 into thesecond tank 19.

From the lower part of the second tank 19 leads a pipe 24, the samebeing equipped with a globe-valve 25. Under some circumstances we equipthe pipe 24 with a filter 26 of any suitable construction, said filterbeing adapted to contain any suitable materialdsuch as charcoal, gravel,or the likenin order to mechanically eliminate whatever impurities thatare present in the grease or oil; but we do not strictly confineourselves to the employment of this filter. The pipe 24 is adapted toconvey the oil or fatty matters and the solvent to a still, whichisadapted to be heated to a temperature which is sufficient to evaporatethe solvent, the fumes of the solvent being subsequently condensed inorder to restore the solvent to a liquid condition and enable its returnin a commercial state to the tank 2'1. One member of the still is aconical steam-drum 27, which is closed at its top and bottom except foran opening through which passes a pipe 28 for conveying a heating mediumto the interior of the drum. The drum is provided with a helical troughor gutter 29, which is united externally to the drum, preferably bybrazing said gutter to the external surface of the drum, although theparts may be united in any other suitable way. The gutter graduallyincreases in diameter from the upper small end of the heating-drum tothe enlarged lower base portionthereof, and this gutter has itsupstanding end 30 coupled in a suitable way to the lower portion of thepipe 24, whereby the solvent and fatty matters may be delivered from thetank 19 directly to the gutter of the still. rlhe still is enveloped bya hood or casing 31, from which leads a curved pipe 32, having an endportion thereof coupled to a condensing coil or worm 33, the latterbeing submerged in a coldwater bath adapted to be contained in acomlensing-tank 3a. rlhe coil or worm 33 is attached at its lower end toa return-pipe 35, that is coupled to the solvent-tank 21, said pipe.being provided with a stop-cock 36. The spiral gutter 29 of the stillis coupled at its lower end to an offbearing-pipe 37, which is attachedto a storage-tank 38, said pipe 37 being provided with a stop-cock 39,which is normally closed.

The operation of the apparatus may be dcscribed as follows: The refusefrom the woolscouring machine is conveyed by the pipe 6 into the primarytank 5, where it is mixed with a reagent, which facilitates theseparation of the grease from the water. The valve 23 being closed, thepump 8 is started, and the mixture is forced into the filter-press untilthe sections are full of the grease-cake, after which fresh water ispumped through the filter in order to wash the grease-cake. The waterwhich is separated from the grease and dirt fiows through the val ves13, and the valve 16 being opened, the water escapes through the pipe15, and during` this operation the grease and dirt which remain in thefilter form into a cake. rlhe valves 9 16 are now closed and the gate 17and the valve 23 are opened, after which the pump is started and thesolvent is forced by the operation of the pump into the filter-press.The action of the solvent on the grease-cake present in the pressdissolves whatever wool-fat there is in the cake, and the solvent andthe fatty matters are allowed to fiow through the valves 13 and thetrough 1-1 into the pipe 18 and thence to the tank 19. The grease orfatty matters in this condition contain the solvent which was admittedto the filter-press for the sepation of the grease from the dirt, and inorder to prevent any unnecessary waste of the solvent we employ thestill and the condenser shown by the drawings. A heating medium, such assteam, is admitted by the pipe 28 to the heating-drum 27 for the purposeof heating the latter and the spiral gutter 29 to the propertemperature, after which the valves 25, 39, and 36 are opened. Themixture flows through the pipe 24 and the filter 2G into the spiralgutter, and as the mixture travels around the conical drum and throughthe gutter it is heated to a temperature sufficient to volatilize thesolvent. r1`he fumes or gases pass through the pipe or neck 32 into theworm or coil of the condenser, wherein they are condensed and restoredto a liquid condition, the solvent being returned in a commercial stateby the pipe to the tank 2]. The fatty matters which are liquefied by theaction of the still escape through the pipe 37 IOO into the storage-tank38, after. which the wool-fat may be drawn from said tank for thepurpose of refining it or of selling it inanatural condition.'

It is to be observed that ourinvention contemplates the treatment of theresiduum b y a solvent at a period immediately following the expressionof liquid matter from said residue and while it remains in thefilter-press. The admission of the solvent to the solid residuedissolves the grease and fatty matter, so as to separate the samefromthe dirt and impurities, and the solvent and the fatty matters are drawnfrom the press into the second tank, wherein they may be retained untilit is desired to distil the matter. This means for and method oftreating the solid matter effects material saving in the time and costrequired to extract the desirable matter from the liquor because thesteps involved are few in number and the solid matter is treateddirectly after the elimination of the liquid matter. The method involvedis not only economical in the particulars recited, but the apparatusrequired consists of comparatively fewk componcnt parts, each of whichis simple in construction and operation. By dissolving the fatty matterfrom the refuse while the substances are in the filter-press and thendrawing o1 the solvent and grease or oil the solid residuum may at oncebe pressed into cakes suitable for manure, thus saving rehandling andsubsequent treatment of the residue.

Having thus described our invention, we claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent` l. An apparatus for treating wool-wash water,comprising a press, valve-controlled ,mechanism for supplying theretothe matter to be treated, valve-controlled connections to said mechanismfor supplyinga solvent under pressure to the solid matters in the press,a tank to receive a mixture of the fatty matters with the solvent fromsaid press, a still connecting with said ta'nk having means foreffecting volatilization of4 the solvent contained in the matterspassing thereto from the tank, a

storage-tank for said matters connecting with the still, and a condenserhaving communication with the still.

A2. An apparatus for treating wool-wash water, comprising a primarytank, a pump havingavalved connection with said tank, a filterpressconnected directly with said pump, a solvent-tank having a valvedconnection with said pump, a second storage-tank, a member arrangedbetween the said filter-press and the second tank and provided with agate, a pipe connecting said member with said second tank, a valvedwater-pipe connected to said member, astill having valved connectionwith the second tank, and a condenser communi` cating with said stilland having a connection with said solvent-tank.- v y 3. In an apparatusfor treating wool-wash water, the combination of a lter-press, a tank toreceive a mixture of fatty matters with solvent therefrom, a stillconnecting with said tank having means for effecting the volatilizationof the solvent contained in the'matters passing thereto from the tank, astorage-tank for said matters connecting with the still, and aclclmdenser having communication with the sti Y 4. vAn apparatus fortreating wool-washwater, comprising a press, valve-controlled mechanismfor supplying thereto the matterto be treated, the said mechanismincluding a pump having Vits outlet connected with the press and aninlet for the pump, valve-.controlled connections to said pump-inlet forsupplying a solvent under pressure to the solid matters in the press,atank to receive the solvent with the fatty matters from the press, and astill connected with said tank.

In testimony whereof we have signed our names to this specification inthe presence of two subscribing witnesses. v

GEORGE E. BEHRENs. GEORGE TAYLOR.

Witnesses:

JNO. M. RITTER, H. T. BERNHARD.

